Ben Carter Enterprises to Buy Several Buildings in Downtown Savannah

By Gail Kalinoski, Contributing Editor

From left: Quinto Anderson, Ben Carter Enterprises CEO; Ben Carter, Lori Judge, founders

Atlanta-based Ben Carter Enterprises has unveiled a $72 million mixed-use plan to buy more than 20 buildings in downtown Savannah, to give the historic Broughton Street shopping and dining district an economic boost.

“Our vision is to mix the best urban retailers and restaurants with local boutiques, galleries and neighborhood eateries in downtown Savannah,” Ben Carter, founder of Ben Carter Enterprises, said in a news release. “We have sincere interest from national and premier retailers and restaurants and believe the Savannah community and visitors will support and enjoy an enhanced urban shopping, dining and living experience.”

Carter’s Broughton portfolio consists of about 150,000 square feet of retail and restaurant spaces along Broughton Street between Jefferson and Drayton streets. The firm also plans to renovate many of the upper floors into approximately 100 apartments for students, young professionals and returning military. The loft-style apartments will be a mix of studios, one- and two-bedroom units.

“We are proud to work with the community to help restore Broughton Street to its splendor and glory of the 1920s and 1940s,” Quinto Anderson, Ben Carter Enterprises CEO, said in the release. “These beautiful old buildings offer exciting enticements to retailers looking for unique urban opportunities.”

The firm has already signed contracts with retailers J. Crew and Palm Avenue for two spaces, according to the Savannah Morning News. While Carter did not have other names locked in, a concept board at a Tuesday press conference showed the kinds of retailers the firm hopes to attract including H&M, L’Occitane, Sunglass Hut, Vineyard Vines, Louis Vitton, Coach, Lululemon and Sephora, the newspaper reported.

Carter is working closely with Lori Judge, founder and principal broker of Judge Realty in Savannah.

“Initially, we planned to purchase five buildings on Broughton, but after working with Lori our vision grew and five turned to 15, and then eventually 25, across five blocks along Broughton Street from Jefferson to Drayton,” Carter stated. “Her knowledge of the local landscape was invaluable.”

The Broughton Street project isn’t Carter’s only Savannah-area development. The firm has been building an outlet mall in nearby Pooler, Ga., since last fall. In late January, Ben Carter Enterprises and Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Inc. announced they were teaming up on the 400,000 square-foot- outlet center. Tanger Outlets Savannah, which has commitments on about 70 percent of the space, will be located on I-95 near the Savannah International Airport.

Last week, Carter said Premier Outlets, a division of Ben Carter Enterprises, was planning a $200 million, 400,000-square-fooot fashion outlet mall in Augusta, Ga. Premier Outlets of Georgia @ Augusta is expected to break ground in November and be open by spring 2016 with about 30 retailers.